Unrequited
by stuckxwithxpins
Summary: Bella moves to Forks and falls head over heels for Edward Cullen. The problem? He's already taken, and his girlfriend isn't prepared to let him go without a fight... All human! First fanfic
1. Preface

**Hi! This is my first ever fanfic, so I hope you enjoy it :) The story appears pretty cliche but it will get more exciting, promise. I'd love it if you could read&review! Thanks xo**

I never thought things would work out this way. I was sure that when I was older, my shyness and naivete would fade away, like shedding a new skin. As a gawky thirteen year old, often scared by my own shadow, I remember my mother telling me how I could achieve whatever I day at school I'd just been picked on for wearing glasses. I sat, sobbing in my mothers lap as she hushed and stroked my hair, wiping away my hot tears.

"Everything looks so big and scary and life-threatening right now baby," She whispered, rocking me back and forth. "But when you look past this, and ignore the silly things they say, you'll be the stronger one."

"Really?" I snivelled. I couldn't picture me being described as strong. Strong was muscles and weight-lifting. Not me.

"Yes, really. Never let other people stand in your way Bella. You can achieve anything if you want it hard enough."

As i grew older of course, i grew less naive and a whole lot more cynical. These motherly, uplifting speeches of wisdom washed over me without a second thought. I'd roll my eyes as my mom spouted more babble about inner strength and confidence. Mom was often in her own little world, and I often tried - and failed - to keep her feet on the ground.

A part of me gets so angry with myself when i remember how i used to react to her advice. I'd shrug it off, act like it was pointless and a complete waste of time. I wish i'd just smiled instead, and kept my thoughts to myself. She never looked offended by my responses but I still regretted it. Now she's gone, I find I even miss the little things that used to thoroughly annoy me. Like how she never put her laundry away - but pile it up on her dresser until you couldn't see anything but a mountain of ironed clothes. Or how she'd forget to put things back in the refridgerator after she'd used them - that used to drive me crazy. When the house was getting packed up after the funeral, I found a melted container of butter left on the kitchen work top. It had obviously been left there since before her death. I picked it up, spilling warm melted butter all over the floor and my jeans. If it was somehow possible to half laugh, and half cry I did it that instant.

I missed her so much. I wouldn't be able to find an adjective strong enough to describe the strength of grief I felt whenever I thought about her. Her smell, her laugh, her smile. Her love that was just completely and utterly constant and never wavering. She was my best friend. And she was taken away.

Life, I've found, has a funny way of just carrying on. After every night i spent crying into my pillow, there was a morning and a sunrise. A new day, a new start. There would be nothing that could replace the void my mother left, but every day the wounds got less painful. The tears were less frequent. I wasn't forgetting her, or getting over her death - not by a long shot. But i was slowly coming to terms with my bad fortune. My mother was no longer alive, and I had to cope with that. It was a task of cataclysmic proportions, but I knew that her heart would break if she saw me acting the way i did.

Nearly two months had passed since the death of my mother. I was still living in my town of Phoenix, Arizona, where I grew up. Every day I'd walk through the streets and it just wouldn't feel right. It didn't feel like home anymore. Not without Mom. Since the house was sold, I'd been temperarily living with Phil - my mothers widowed fiance, in a rented appartment. It was only a short-term arrangement. I needed to complete my studies for the year, until I completely packed up and moved north to Washington, to live with my father. Thinking about moving to a completely new school made my stomach turn. I was still the gawky, shy girl I always was. I had a few friends in Phoenix, but my bashfulness often obliterated any form of friendship from the offset. I preferred to be alone. I could be truly comfortable by myself. The fact that I was prolonging the gut-wrenching wait to move because of my studies was also ridiculous. I'd already pretty much failed the entire year. Grief just does not care for grades. My teachers were very sympathetic when they heard about the news, and with a little extra credit work they agreed to let the bad grades slide. I was also a little unnerved by the fact that I'd have to move states and live with my father, Charlie. Charlie had never been completely absent. I used to spend every summer at his house in Forks, Washington up until I was about twelve. After that, Charlie was promoted to chief of police and it was almost impossible to fit me in around his tight work schedule. He'd sometimes come up to visit when he had a spare couple of weeks but it was often strained. The less I saw him, the less I had to talk about. Phone conversations were very short and a little awkward. I definitely follow in my fathers footsteps in terms of social skills. We're both born loners. He'd always remember my birthday though, and he was definitely more involved than alot of the fathers of kids i knew at school. Still, it had been years, I'd grown up alot since the last time I'd spent a considerable amount of time with him, and my mind filtered through possible conversation topics I could use when I had to actually talk to him. Of course, I'd seen him at the funeral but we mostly talked about Mom, or the move to Forks. Nothing light.

My stomach quickly filled with butterflies as i took one last glance around my bedroom, checking for any forgotten items i'd left lying around. All of my larger things had already been shipped to the house in Forks, all i had now was a suitcase and a carry-on bag. This was probably the last time I'd ever be in Phoenix. As much as it hurt to leave the place where I had such happy memories, I knew that starting somewhere new could be the best thing for me. So with a heavy sigh, I collected my things and left the appartment. Hello, new life.

I arrived in Forks at 7pm. The travelling had made me so tired I could barely keep my eyes open. My feet dragged as I made my way out into the airport arrivals lounge. I recognised Charlie straight away, bobbing from foot to foot, impatient for my entrance.

"Bella!" Charlie rushed to my side, but then seemed at a loss on how to say hello. He decided a hug was neccessary, so stiffly pulled me into his arms. Very awkward.

"How was your flight?" He asked, deftly picking up my suit case and bag, and making his way out to the car park.

"Tiring." I replied. I needed a goodnight sleep, badly. My conversation topics had also flown straight out of my mind too.

"Ah." Charlie was also lost for words.

We travelled through the town mostly in silence. I remembered the greenery, and the temperamental weather from past summers, but it was still a little culture shock. I better get used to it, i mused to myself. This was home now.

I spent the rest of the night unpacking my things, Charlie helped a little but soon realised he was more a hindrance. It was quite therapeutic, filliing my entry wardrobes and drawers. Charlie had left me some paperwork in regards to my new school - it was just a pack of welcome notes and things I needed to know about starting next week. Forks High school was apparantly very small and only had a couple of hundred students, which made it inevitable that trying to blend in unnoticed was going to be completely impossible.

That night, I slept in a cold, alien bed, wondering what the rest of my time here would bring. Foremost, I wished for happiness. Next to my bed I'd placed the framed photograph of my Mom and I, on the porch of the Phoenix house, smiling together. I blinked back the tears I knew were sure to come and whispered a tiny goodnight to her, before turning out the light.


	2. one

My first day at Forks High School was not going to a good start. At all.

I was being stared at as if I had three heads. For someone as paranoid and shy as me, this was pure torture. My teachers, completely oblivious to my embarassment, all forced me to introduce myself to the rest of the class. My stammering and stuttering seemed very amusing to some of my classmates, and I was having to deal with being referred to as "B-B-Bella" throughout the whole of English. I ducked my head down and tried to take notes, blocking out the gentle teasing. I knew they were only kidding around, and most kids would have just laughed it off and used it as a starting block for conversation. But i was not most kids. I was shy, anti-social Bella, and i proceeded to blush a deep shade of crimson and sink lower into my seat. As the bell rung for lunch, i breathed a giant sigh of relief. As i tried to dash as quickly as I could out of the room, my teacher - whose name i had already forgotten - beckoned me over to his desk.

"Isabella, I've found someone who has many of the same classes as you, and she's willingly obliged to look after you for the rest of today." He smiled at the girl who was directly on his left. "This is Tanya."

Tanya grinned a hello at me. She had long, dead straight strawberry-blonde hair, and she was very tall. Her eyes were a deep blue and I suddenly felt very dowdy and stumpy standing next to her.

"Nice to meet you." She smiled warmly. She seemed genuine, which was nice.

"You too." I replied meekly.

"you hungry?"

"Yeah, a little." I admitted, as we made our way out into the busy corridor.

"Ok, I'll show you where the canteen is. It's this way."

It felt better to have someone to walk with around the school - when i had someone to talk to it took my mind off the fact people were staring at me.

"Hey, take a picture Newton, It'll last longer." Tanya snapped at a boy who was leaning in the doorway, obstructing our entrance.

"Sorry, sorry..." He trailed away. I didn't even look at his face, but i smiled a thankyou at Tanya for fighting my corner.

After we'd queued up, we took a seat at a table in the corner of the room, which I was thankful for. I didn't want to be sitting right in the middle for everyone to gawp at me like I was a circus act.

"Do you never get new students? I feel like a freak show..." I sighed, opening my coke.

Tanya laughed.

"It's pretty rare we get a new face round here. Plus, everybody knows everybody in this town, so we were kind of anticipating your arrival."

I pulled a face to show my embarassment, and decided to keep my eyes on the table to avoid further blushing.

After about ten minutes, a few new people showed up at our table and sat down. Tanya sweetly introduced me to two girls - Jessica and Rosalie. They were both pretty and blonde, and talking animatedly about some party they'd been to at the weekend. I was also introduced to Rosalies boyfriend Emmet - a huge football player looking guy. He didn't stick around but he jokingly told me that "it was nice to meet you B-B-Bella".

Embarassing news apparantly travelled fast in this school.

I didn't really par-take in their conversations, the three girls were very talkative and spent the majority of the time gossiping about different girls and their outfits. I decided to tune out the idle spiel of their chatter, and as I took a quick glance around the canteen checking for any more staring eyes, I noticed a tall figure dressed all in black lumbering over to the table. He had messy, bronze coloured hair that hung over his eyes. His black tshirt concealed obvious toned muscle and i felt my eyes flicker over him without any control. He had pale white skin, and deep forest green eyes, so mesmorizing that I forgot that normally I had a heavy aversion to eye contact. If anything, I wanted to look in his eyes closer. They were beautiful. I then realised with a jolt that I had been staring at this guy for far too long. I quickly looked in the opposite direction, blushing. I hoped he hadn't noticed. Just as I took the nerve to look back and see where he went, I noticed him standing right beside me, behind Tanya's chair, his arms wrapped around her. My heart sank. Of course he would have a girlfriend.

"Bella, this is Edward." Tanya squealed gratingly as he kissed her on the cheek. "Edward, this is Bella. She's new."  
Edward gave me a side-long glance and gave me a small smile. "Hey."

He looked away again, his attention firmly on Tanya. My posture was suddenly rigid with embarassment. Life was so unfair.

Days stretched into weeks. Forks was becoming alot more comfortable, and I had Tanya and the other girls to thank for that, in a way. Jessica and Rosalie, alot like Tanya, were quite catty and very opiniated, but they seemed to like me despite our clear cut differences. I assumed that this was because I was more of a listnener, and the three girls were very much more the talkers. If i was being genuinely honest, I found their conversations and their opinions boring and immature. They'd often talk about other girls they 'hated' but would suddenly be best friends with five minutes later. Of course, I didn't say anything about it. I didn't want to jeopardise the little comfortability I had found at all. The only girl I'd spoken to that seemed to have a little more depth was a girl in my biology class called Alice, who, although quite quiet, had alot more interesting observations than Tanya, Rosalie and Jessica put together. I never got a chance to hang out with her other than in class, which was a shame. She always seemed to disappear, and I never once saw her in the lunch-hall.

The one major conflict in my bubble of comfortability in Forks was Edward. Having a crush on your friend's boyfriend was never going to be smooth sailing. I'd watch as he wrapped his arms around Tanya, kissing her on the cheek and lacing her fingers with his. They seemed like the perfect couple, and my heart sank when I saw them together. I felt pathetic and small and stupid when I'd look away from them, feeling jealous. I'd never even had a full conversation with him, and this crush was just a shallow adoration of his good-looks. I felt just as immature as the three girls I'd slated, and that made me feel even worse. So, as days went by, I resoluted to getting over this school-girl crush and find someone who would actually like me back.

"Hey Bella." Rosalie greeted me as I joined them at lunch. Jessica was sitting directly to her left, writing furiously with books scattered around her.

"Hi, what's going on?" I nodded my head at Jessica, who appeared so absorbed she was unaware of my arrival.

"Jessica didn't realise the english assignment was due in today. She's got about four pages to write in the next forty minutes." Rosalie guffawed.

"Ah, that sucks." I winced.

Rosalie flicked her hair behind her shoulder dismissively. Her face was perfectly made up, and her nails always manicured. She was like a living barbie doll.

"Are you coming friday night?" Rosalie cocked her head to one side, surveying me. I suddenly felt a little unkempt. The rain had made my straightened hair frizz and wave, and i felt alot more aware of it now sitting opposite Rosalie.

"Friday...?"

"Yes, friday! We sent you the event invitation on facebook Bella, jeez." Rosalie rolled her eyes. "It's Emmett's birthday, and his parents have caved in and are letting him throw a party. You have to come!"

"Ok, sure. I'll be there." I smiled in response. As much as Rosalie's artificiality annoyed me, she was always really pleasant to me. It made me feel guilty for thinking the way I did sometimes.

Later that night, I logged onto my computer for the first time in weeks. Charlie had given me his old laptop for school work, but being quite honest I rarely used it. I preferred pen and paper when it came to writing essays - it helped me think more clearly. Nevertheless, I was intrigued about Emmett's party. Maybe there would be some nice, pleasant guys at this party that would be even nicer looking than Edward. I laughed humourlessly at my own childishness. I feared that Rosalie and the rest of them were rubbing off on me.

I clicked 'attending' on the invitation and browsed through some of the other attending guests. The names were familiar but I didn't recognise many. I was still trying to learn everybody's names but it wasn't going very well.

That second, a chat-box appeared on my screen. My heart suddenly flew when I realised who was speaking to me.

_Edward:_

_Hey! How's it going? :)_

I took a breath and quickly replied.

_Bella:  
Hi ! Good thanks, & you?_

_Edward:  
Yeah good. What you been up to?_

My mind raced. I hated trivial questions like these. The normal reply would always be 'not much' and then I'd revert the question back to them, but I wanted to appear more interesting to him. I turned back on the logical part of my brain that was shouting "you're pathetic!" and tried to drum up a response that would enable more conversation.

_Bella:_

_Nothing overly exciting, i guess - just planning my weekend! Got Emmetts invite?_

_Edward:  
Ah right, you a busy girl then? Yeah, I'm going. Are you?_

_Bella:_

_Of course, I've been inundated with offers. I can just about fit in Emmetts party though :) I'll see you there! _

_Edward:  
Haha, sure. Sounds good :) _

Our chat carried on way longer than neccessary. We started talking about favourite movies, bands, concerts and gigs we've been to and we had so much more in common than I would have imagined. Both being fans of punkrock but not opposed to most rock and metal genres we started a mad conversation of recommending bands to each other. he sent me a few songs and i immediately transferred them onto my iPod. When it got to about midnight, we both signed out.

I went to sleep that night, elated. Edward and i had so much in common, and he was so nice to speak to. Granted, it wasn't a 'real' conversation but it felt nice just the same. I pushed away any guilty thoughts, as far as I was concerned there was nothing wrong with chatting on instant messenger. it's what friends do. If Tanya took this the wrong way, then she was the one with the problem, not me.

I spent a little bit longer getting ready to school the next morning. I grimaced in the mirror to myself as i sadly succumbed to the peer-pressure cliche of prettying myself up for a boy. I spent a little longer straightening my hair, and blitzed it with hairspray to hold it in place instead of clipping it back with hairslides. I tried a little bit of mascara and eyeliner but having never been very good with make-up i only did the basics. I was sure that the rain would make this makeup and hairspray slide right out, so there really wasn't much point in all this effort - and of course the fact that he had a girlfriend, too. I stared poignantly at my reflection. It felt like I was constantly flipping a coin - one side of me selfishly cursed my bad luck he had a girlfriend, and felt a strong connection with this gorgeous boy and wanted more. The other side wanted to back away, not wanting to give myself false hope. I felt like I'd suddenly gained multiple personalities.

By lunch, miraculously, my hair had stayed in place and my makeup hadn't disappeared.

"Hey Bella! Did you finish your History paper?" Tanya asked as soon as I sat down.

"Um, yeah. You want to look at mine?"I reached into my bag and pulled out my notebook.

"Ah thankyou, life saver!" Tanya exclaimed.

I looked briefly at Edward who was sitting at her side - of course - but he didn't even glance in my direction. He was idly playing with his car keys, spinning them round and round his fingers.

The rest of lunch carried on in much the same way. I piped up a little more than I would normally in conversations, in the hope Edward would join in. He did now and again, but it was never a direct response to me. As the bell rung for class, I looked him in the eye again, but he brushed straight past as if i didn't even exist. I slumped, dejected to Biology, wondering whether the chatty and funny conversation we'd had last night was just a figment of my imagination.


	3. two

I was one of the first to arrive in class after lunch. I vacantly stared out of the window, into the rain. The sky was now a dark, angry grey to match my mood and I laughed darkly to myself at the idea that pathetic fallacy was at play. Edward had acted like I didn't even exist, and I hated that. What I hated even more, was that I was obsessing over someone I knew I couldn't have. He was out of bounds. I knew that if it wasn't for the fun and joking conversation we'd shared on-line the night before, I wouldn't even think his behaviour out of the ordinary. My mind whirred over and over, and I only jolted out of my thoughts when Alice pulled her seat back with a scrape to sit down.

Alice was very small and skinny, with pale white skin and jet black short hair. She had the kind of hair that you just wanted to ruffle - it was so tufty and sticking out at odd ends.

"Hey Bella!"  
"Hey." I muttered, not reflecting her upbeat tone. I couldn't even pretend to be cheerful.

"Something up?" Alice asked inquisitively, resting her head on her hand and staring at me with wide eyes.

I sighed.

"No, it's okay. Don't worry." I then wondered if it was that much of a bad idea to get an outsiders opinion on this. Alice didn't even know Edward and Tanya, maybe she would give some friendly advice without judging.

"Actually." I turned to face her. "What would you do if a guy you really liked just started blanking you?"

Alice bit her lip and thought for a few seconds.

"I'd make it impossible for him not to notice me." She declared with a grin.

I blinked.

"How would you do that?"

"I'd make myself look fabulous, then flaunt it in his face." Alice giggled.

"Thanks, I'll bear that in mind." I replied, rolling my eyes.

"Or..." Alice's small features pulled into a more serious expression. "I'd ask him what was up. Just ask him straight out what his problem is. That way you'd be closer to rectifying the situation."  
I slumped into my seat. I couldn't ask him. I'd only spoken to him properly once, and that was through a computer. I didn't want to appear like some clingy possesive lunatic.

Noticing my reaction, Alice squeezed my shoulder.

"If you need some help with a makeover, you should know that I'm a pro."  
I had noticed before that Alice's outfits were always perfect. Her manicure could have given Rosalie's a run for it's money, that was for sure. I wavered. I didn't want to go to all this effort for nothing. It felt like a useless cause. But what was the harm, after all? This was what regular teenage girls did. I needed some normality for once.

"I may take you up on that," I smiled. "Are you busy friday? I'm going to a party the guy's going to be at."

"Emmetts party?" Alice asked, excitedly.

"Yeah!" I replied. "Are you going?"

"Yes! We can get ready together, if you'd like?" Alice clapped her hands together. "When I'm finished with you, he'd be crazy to ignore you!"

"How do you know him? Emmett i mean," I asked. If she knew Emmett, she was probably familiar with Edward and Tanya too. I silently thanked myself for not revealing any names.

"Oh he's friends with my brother." Alice replied, tearing a piece of paper from the back of her notebook and scribbling quickly. "Here's my address, come to mine about 5pm?"  
"Okay, sure. Thanks for this." I glanced at the street name but didn't recognise it. I'd have to ask Charlie for directions when I got home.

At the end of class my mood had definitely brightened. As the bell rung, Alice quickly started packing away her things, dropping about four books in the process.

"Here." I bent down and picked up her textbook for her, and as I passed it to her I noticed her name, written across the front in small neat handwriting. 'Alice Cullen.'

I stared at the last name with my mouth wide, before slowly passing it back to her.

"Alice, is your brother called Edward?" I gasped. How could I not have noticed this? I cursed my severe lack of observational skills.

"Yeah, you know him?" Alice asked, but didn't give me a chance to reply. "I'll see you friday Bella!" And she dashed from the classroom without a backwards glance, leaving me completely gobsmacked.

The sun glared into my eyes, obscuring my vision. I lifted a hand up to shield the glare, squinting to see the house number more clearly. The weather was being hugely temperamental - today was unusually warm and sunny for Forks. The house number matched the address i was holding so i assumed I'd come to the right place. The first thing I noticed was the sheer size of the house - absolutely gigantic. It had at least three stories, with huge glass windows. It was made of dark red brick and beside it there was a garage that was nearly as big as the house. I wondered how many cars they could possibly own to require a garage that large.

I tentatively knocked on the front door and Alice immediately opened it, beaming wildly. Her hair was in curlers and she was wearing a waffle bath robe.

"Hey Bella! You found the house okay, then?"  
"Uh, yeah.." I trailed away. The inside was just as impressive as the outside. A large wooden sweeping staircase was directly behind the doorway, and hovering above our heads was possibly the largest gilt black chandelier i'd ever seen.

"This way, this way..." Alice ushered me upstairs and into her bedroom, which was just as grand. A white four poster bed stood in the centre, draped with white sheer fabrics. Wrapped around the posts were tiny glittering fairy lights and plastic flowers.

"So I just realised," Alice sat me onto her dresser stool and shook out my hair from it's messy ponytail. "You never revealed to me who this guy was you're trying to impress!"

I swallowed, trying to think of a way to lie without being caught out.

"Uh, you don't know him." I squeaked.

"I probably do, Forks high is pretty small." Alice smiled, raising an eyebrow.

"I'd rather not say," I averted my gaze from hers. "I don't want to jinx it."

Alice gave a little tinkling laugh.

"Wouldn't have thought you the superstitious type..." Alice's sentence was immediately cut short by the sudden loud music being blasted in the next room. I recognised the song straight away - it was one of the songs I'd sent Edward a few days ago.

"EDWARD!" Alice hollered louder than I would think possible for such a tiny person.

The music didn't stop, but her bedroom door creaked open, and Edward's head poked round.

He looked so gorgeous, but his face broke into a perplexed expression when he noticed me sitting there. His eyes practically popped out of his head.  
"Bella..." He quickly smiled, running a hand through his messy hair.

My heart started fluttering at a ridiculous speed as he said my name. He was actually speaking to me.

"Hi." I squeaked at such a high pitch it was nearly inaudible.

"You know each other?" Alice darted her eyes to us both, confused.

Edward ignored the question and asked one of his own.

"Why were you screaming my name anyway? I'm trying to listen to music here."

Alice sighed, exasperated.

"I was shouting at you to turn it down. You're so inconsiderate sometimes, I have company."

"I do apologise Bella, I didn't mean to be rude." He flashed me a bright grin and winked. "See you later." And he backed out of the room, closing the door gently. I felt my face flush.

"He's such an ass." Alice huffed as she started combing my hair. She looked up into the mirror and met my eyes. "How do you know him then?"

"Tanya introduced me." I explained, watching her as she deftly wrapped my hair round the curling iron she'd just plugged in.

"You're friends with Tanya?" Alice's eyes narrowed. I didn't understand why she was asking me so many questions. I worried whether or not she'd caught on I had a crush on Edward from that brief meeting in front of her. Was i that transparent?  
"Um," I paused. Was I? "I don't know." I admitted. "She showed me around the first couple of days and I hang out with her and her friends at school now, but she does grate on me a little."

Alice looked as though she was surpressing a smile at the end of my sentence.

"Are you friends with her then?" I asked.

"Hell no." Alice snorted. "That girl is more trouble than she's worth."

"Really?" I felt a bout of intrigue. If Alice had reason to dislike her, maybe Tanya wasn't so perfect after all.

"Let's just put it this way." Alice started clipping sections of my hair up. It was looking very curly from where I was sitting, and I stared at my reflection, apprehensive. "Edward and I aren't hugely close, but I'm protective when it comes to him getting hurt. All Tanya's done is hurt him since they got together."  
I furrowed my eyebrows. They looked so perfect and happy whenever I saw them.

Alice continued.  
"They have huge, vitriolic arguments and breakups, over practically nothing. She treats him like crap, and when he tries to reason with her she just breaks up with him. They always get back together though because she knows how to wrap him around her little finger." Alice rolled her eyes. "Also, Edward would never admit it, but i think he's kind of insecure. I don't think he'd imagine there'd be anyone else out there that would want to be with him like Tanya."  
I fought the urge to argue that last statement. Edward was beautiful! He'd be crazy to think no other girl would want him.

"Poor Edward." I whispered.

"And that's not all. The last time they went on a break was about a month ago. Tanya was so angry that he was the one to initiate some time apart, she slept with someone else." Alice shook her head, her mouth a thin white line. "He was heartbroken, but took her back when she said it meant nothing. She's gotten away with the ultimate betrayal."

I stared at Alice, agape. Tanya had done all this, and still he stayed with her. It defied all sane logic. What kind of a hold must she have on him? My anger at Tanya was soon drowned in sadness for Edward. She seemed like the girlfriend from hell. How could she get away with treating him like this, and still be the one to hold his hand and call him 'hers'? I blinked away some angry tears and tried to focus on the new conversation Alice was starting, though my mind didn't wander far from Edward.

Alice's transformation on my hair and makeup was soon complete, and I looked almost unrecognisable. My hair was falling around my shoulders in thick shiny waves. My eyelashes looked longer than I'd ever seen and my eyes glittered with dark eyeshadow.

"My best work to date, i think!" Alice declared with a flourish, before darting into her closet and pulling out a bundle of blue material. "Here."  
She passed me what was actually a dress - pale blue and strapless, with a sweetheart neckline and tiny pearlised buttons on the front. It was very cute, but not very me.

"I don't know, Alice..." I held the dress up against me. "It's a little girly for my taste."  
"Nonsense!" Alice pushed me into her en-suite with a dismissive shake of the head. "Try it, please!"

Looking in the reflection was like staring at an alien. The dress was very flattering, and the blue didn't look too harsh against my pale skin. I actually liked it, which was very strange for me - the most adventurous I ever went with fashion was deciding whether to wear a tshirt or a sweater to go with my jeans.

Alice was ecstatic when I re-entered the bedroom, and threw a pale grey wrap over my shoulders.

"Let's go!" She grinned excitedly. Alice looked amazing, in a mint green beaded dress that looked like it was spirited straight out of the 1920s.

As we waited out in the sunny porch for the cab to arrive, we caught sight of Edward, crossing the street. He was wearing a shirt and dark trousers, his hands deep in the pockets and his iPod on.  
"Probably going to meet Tanya so they can arrive together." Alice hissed, rolling her eyes.

I looked on as Edward's figure got smaller and smaller into the distance, and I felt a huge wave of anger at Tanya for treating him the way she did. He deserved so much better. Not me, neccessarily, but something more. Noone deserved the dirt she'd thrown at him. I let out a sigh as I watched him disappear completely from view, and I hoped he'd figure all of this out for himself.


End file.
